Smart TV Purchases, Inclusive Digital Content, & More | Weekly Marketing News

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There’s been a lot to cover when it came to marketing news this week. In Connected TV news in particular, new research from Interpret found that despite the wide proliferation of streaming services and Connected TV devices already in consumers’ homes, many more are interested in adding these products to their living rooms. In fact, half of consumers who are planning to purchase a smart TV or a streaming media player in the next three months will be first-time buyers. According to Brett Sappington, vice president of research at Interpret, this sector is primed for growth, and their research shows that “each brand attracts a unique consumer audience, with differing characteristics, habits, and preferences that are often related to key features. Those brands that best meet consumers’ needs stand the best chance of gaining market share.” And with 1.28 billion CTV and Smart TV devices already purchased worldwide, according to Strategy Analytics, marketers who haven’t yet considered adding Connected TV marketing to their advertising strategies are missing out on reaching a growing population of consumers.

Here are the rest of the marketing headlines that caught our attention this week. 

DIGITAL

Don’t Let Your Digital Shelf Space Go Untouched – Marketers have outdone themselves over the years creating intricate physical shelf displays and packaging and now it’s time to apply that same focus to the digital shelf. So, what really is the digital shelf and what do you need to know to revolutionize your presence on it? 

Designing Digital Content With Inclusivity In Mind – Even if you design your site to perfection, your experience could make someone with a disability feel unwelcome. If that gives you pause to consider how accessible your own digital content is, the likely answer is “Not enough.”

Did Covid-19 Change Digital Marketing Forever? – The pandemic not only led to changes in how teams function, it also led to key shifts in consumer behavior and the average customer journey. But how have these changes influenced the way in which marketers are optimizing campaigns and strategies?

Buying Is Boring. Consumers Want to Browse. – You’d think, after over a year of shopping almost exclusively online, consumers would have fashioned an experience they were a little more fond of. Yet in many discussions with shoppers, we’re finding the opposite is true.

CONNECTED TV & STREAMING

Plenty of First-Time Connected TV Device Buyers Still Out There – The proliferation of streaming services, connected TV devices and smart TVs apparently doesn’t mean that everyone has bought in just yet.

Ad Tech’s Targeting Revolution Will Be Televised – With the burgeoning proliferation of Unified ID 2.0 in digital TV environments, the idea is to bring impression-level, programmatic targeting to TV ad buying. 

Discovery Inc. Starts Discovery Sports — Does It Signal More To Come? – The proposed Warner Bros. Discovery company may be mulling an expansion of one area of TV programming: sports. This comes as Discovery Inc recently created a Discovery Sports unit – which encompasses sports on Discovery+ and Discovery’s free-to-air networks.

In The-More-Things-Change Department: TV’s Recycle Cycle Continues – Last week, Nielsen reported that streaming had topped broadcast TV in total usage for the first time. Yet both of those media still trail cable TV.  Every platform still needs content — and plenty of it — which can make for interesting, sometimes ironic relationships.

What a Summer Reopening Means for Brands on Connected TV – With the summer of 2021 becoming the first season of a return to normal, it’s natural to wonder if CTV’s rapid growth throughout the pandemic will start to ebb. But like the rise of remote work, there is no putting the genie back in the bottle – CTV demand is here to stay.

WarnerMedia Wraps Upfront Sales, Securing Record Revenue – WarnerMedia became one of the last big media companies to finish this year’s upfront negotiations, in what is likely the last time it will conduct upfront business prior to its upcoming merger with Discovery. 

MOBILE

Instagram Pivots To Full-Screen Video Push To Take On TikTok, YouTube – In a bid to go head-on against TikTok and YouTube, Facebook’s Instagram will soon begin showing full-screen recommended videos in users’ feeds.

What Apple’s iOS 15 means for marketers – Apple’s upcoming privacy changes will make opt-ins more valuable and may complicate already strained efforts to reach target users on iPhones.

Mobile Marketing Budgets to be Valued at a Whopping $230 Billion This Year – It would be an understatement to say that the effects of the pandemic have paved the way for new opportunities for mobile advertisers, especially when it comes to social media and mCommerce.

WE’LL KEEP YOU UP-TO-DATE

That’s it for the roundup this week, next week we’ll be back with another list of what’s making news in marketing.

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